University of Wisconsin Madison Secondary Education
http://pubs.wisc.edu/ug/06education/Overviews/SecEd.html
Overview: Secondary Education (English, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies)
UW-Madison's high school/middle school teacher preparation programs are among the most innovative in the nation. They are grounded in the latest education research. And they are continually reviewed and revised to give future teachers the experiences they will need to succeed in contemporary classrooms. Once admitted to the program, students pursue a full-time, four-semester sequence that combines education courses and school-based field experiences. The program emphasizes
Integrated and coordinated course work. Students engage in a coherent, progressive series of courses and experiences that build on their increasing knowledge and skills.
Course work that links directly and immediately to school practice. Because their courses tie directly to field experiences, students can better relate what they learn in class to the concrete challenges of schools, classrooms, and adolescents. Students have ample opportunities to test, revise, and reflect on their developing teaching and planning skills.
Team learning that fosters dialogue and collaboration. Students are organized into learning communities and learning teams. During the first semester, smaller interdisciplinary learning teams are assigned to the same school and collaborate on projects. These groups offer students the opportunity for dialogue with faculty, peers, and cooperating teachers while preparing them for schools where curriculum is increasingly interconnected and teachers collaborate daily.
A commitment to prepare future teachers who can help each child learn. In course work and field experiences, students explore teaching and learning issues related to ethnic, cultural, and language diversity, social class, and students' special needs and abilities.
Program Structure and Sequence
Program majors include English, Mathematics, Science (Biology, Broad Field Science [Natural Science], Chemistry, Earth and Space Science, and Physics), and Social Studies (Broad Field Social Studies, Economics, Geography, History, Political Science, and Sociology). Completion of these Secondary Education programs leads to a Bachelor of Science degree in Education with a major in the specific subject area.
Most of these Secondary Education programs have three components:
Liberal studies/General Education courses expose students to a broad range of academic disciplines.
Major course work offers in-depth study of the subject students will teach.
Professional education courses include education foundation and teaching methods courses as well as experience in the schools through practica and student teaching.
A few programs also include "disciplinary course work"—classes that may be prerequisites to major courses or that support major course work, but which are not counted toward major requirements or the major grade point average.
Students interested in Secondary Education usually begin their academic careers as School of Education students with a "pre-professional" designation. Pre-Secondary Education students enroll in liberal studies, general education, disciplinary, prerequisite, and major courses during their freshman, sophomore, and sometimes junior years. Because Secondary Education students must complete nearly all of their major course work to be eligible to apply to the professional program, freshmen begin work on their major course work immediately. Current on-campus students wishing to transfer to the School of Education can find a pre-professional application form at the "Forms" quick link; choose the "Pre-Teacher Education" link.
Students generally apply to the professional program during their junior years and begin the four-semester professional sequence as a senior in the subsequent fall. Professional education course work is reserved for this four-semester professional sequence. The semesters of professional course work are followed sequentially and taken in consecutive semesters. Because of the program structure, students are expected to have completed most of their major and liberal studies course work by the start of the professional sequence.
It is anticipated that most students will require five years to complete the program, although students are sometimes able to finish in four to four-and-a-half years.
Program Admission
Limited and competitive admission to these Secondary Education programs occurs once each year in the summer. Students apply between early October and February 1, usually during their junior year. Applicants must meet minimum eligibility requirements to be considered for selection. These include 54 total earned credits by the end of the spring semester of application; a minimum number of credits in the major; a minimum grade point average of 2.75 on all completed major courses; a minimum 2.75 cumulative grade point average; submission of scores on the Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST; also called Praxis I); and completed application materials submitted by February 1. Students are admitted each summer to begin the professional sequence in the fall.
Students will be selected to these programs based on a holistic judgment of each eligible applicant's dossier by a panel of program faculty and staff. Applicants will be judged on their proficiency or potential proficiency on several criteria. For more detailed information, see Admission and Appication Information for English Education, Mathematics Education, Science Education, or Social Studies Education.
Advising
Students are encouraged to meet regularly with their advisor at Education Academic Services (EAS). Advisors are located in Room 139 Education Building, 1000 Bascom Mall (call 608-262-1651 to make an appointment). Once admitted to a professional program, students work closely with their program faculty advisor. Advisor names and contact information are listed under each specific major.
New freshmen discuss program options with advisors during the Student Orientation, Advising and Registration (SOAR) Program. At SOAR, advisors help students select courses and plan their first semesters at UW-Madison. Recognizing that students often have many academic interests and more than one possible career goal, School of Education advisors help students explore options and maintain academic flexibility. Prospective off-campus transfer students and on-campus students considering teacher education usually meet with an advisor in an individual advising session.